4 ms·

I don't personally know a single person outside of developers that have side loaded apps on Android. Maybe I am an anomaly, but it just seems very rare.

dublinben 4y ago
It's probably just you. Fortnite went sideload-only on Android in 2018, and had ~40m players on Android. Their userbase is 60% 18-24 years old, so you may not know many players. [0] Leading drone maker DJI's app for Android is also sideload-only, and they've sold hundreds of thousands of drones to people, many of whom probably use Android. [0] https://www.sportskeeda.com/esports/how-many-people-play-fortnite-2021 https://www.sportskeeda.com/esports/how-many-people-play-for...
- m463 4y ago
  I wouldn't sideload a DJI app on my phone - for that matter any chinese manufacturer
squeaky-clean 4y ago
My mom got tricked into installing an "emoji pack" that would make her phone give her constant notifications for a gambling website. She doesn't know she sideloaded an app, but that's what happened.
- ianlevesque 4y ago
  On Android you have to download the app, open it, navigate a dialog with no Next or OK buttons (it requires you to toggle on a permission switch for the application you are using out of a list of applications) and then go back and try again, then click install. If you are doing all of that, you are very determined to install that malware. I don't think protecting against that is worth denying everyone else the freedom to use their device as they see fit.
  - TheHappyOddish 4y ago
    I'm going to assume you're coming from a place of ignorance here. A significant portion of people (often > 50) will absolutely follow this process if guided maliciously. Many people are incapable of grokking a warning message, as using a misunderstood device already sets their anxiety high. I'm not saying Apples method is necessarily the right method, but stating that these people aren't worth protecting - or at least not worth protecting at the cost of opening up a device you bought knowing it was closed and had alternatives for - comes across as callous as best.

dublinben 4y ago

It's probably just you. Fortnite went sideload-only on Android in 2018, and had ~40m players on Android. Their userbase is 60% 18-24 years old, so you may not know many players. [0] Leading drone maker DJI's app for Android is also sideload-only, and they've sold hundreds of thousands of drones to people, many of whom probably use Android. [0] https://www.sportskeeda.com/esports/how-many-people-play-fortnite-2021 https://www.sportskeeda.com/esports/how-many-people-play-for...

m463 4y ago
I wouldn't sideload a DJI app on my phone - for that matter any chinese manufacturer

squeaky-clean 4y ago

My mom got tricked into installing an "emoji pack" that would make her phone give her constant notifications for a gambling website. She doesn't know she sideloaded an app, but that's what happened.

ianlevesque 4y ago
On Android you have to download the app, open it, navigate a dialog with no Next or OK buttons (it requires you to toggle on a permission switch for the application you are using out of a list of applications) and then go back and try again, then click install. If you are doing all of that, you are very determined to install that malware. I don't think protecting against that is worth denying everyone else the freedom to use their device as they see fit.
- TheHappyOddish 4y ago
  I'm going to assume you're coming from a place of ignorance here. A significant portion of people (often > 50) will absolutely follow this process if guided maliciously. Many people are incapable of grokking a warning message, as using a misunderstood device already sets their anxiety high. I'm not saying Apples method is necessarily the right method, but stating that these people aren't worth protecting - or at least not worth protecting at the cost of opening up a device you bought knowing it was closed and had alternatives for - comes across as callous as best.